Internship Highlight: Reid Kusic, PIAD Precision Casting

Working to understand both company and customer needs, Reid Kusic was able to assist in streamlining quality assurance processes during his summer internship with PIAD Precision Casting. 

PIAD’s customers often request Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) documentation for the copper mold designs that they commission as a way to assure the quality of the product and that it can meet all of the desired requirements. As their Quality Management Associate Intern, Reid worked on developing a comprehensive Quality Management System (QMS) process automation software to track and generate the various PPAP documents required for specific customer orders. 

“Due to the varying documentation requirements across customers, PIAD asked me to design an interdepartmental system to compile and organize the required elements,” he said. “This encompasses authorized engineering changes, control plans, process flow diagrams, design failure mode and effects analysis, and process failure mode and effects analysis.” 

As he worked on this project, Reid found the data analysis, organization, and documentation practices he’d learned as a materials science Master’s degree student at Carnegie Mellon to be immensely beneficial. He credits lab work and classes such as Kinetics of Metallurgical Reactions and Processes for providing him with the foundational knowledge necessary to effectively compile, structure, and present large volumes of data in a clear and concise manner to interdisciplinary team members.

The testing and design techniques I’ve learned at CMU have enabled me to effectively identify and analyze processes

Reid Kusic, MS Student, Materials Science and Engineering Department

 

“The metallurgical experimental testing and design techniques I’ve learned during my time at CMU have enabled me to quickly and effectively identify and analyze processes during my time at PIAD,” he said.  

After working with the professor Chris Pistorius’s research group, Reid was interested in learning more about metallurgical manufacturing. The opportunity to work with a smaller company was also appealing, as he felt he could make a greater impact in his role. As the PPAPs serve as a testing phase for the production of a part, Reid also had the opportunity to get involved in failure analysis, root cause investigations, and defect tracking processes for various parts, so he could thoroughly inspect and test manufacturing processes.

“I enjoyed the tactile aspects of this internship, where I had physical parts I could hold and inspect,” he noted.

Another component of the experience that Reid found interesting was the opportunity to travel between PIAD’s two facilities, the foundry where the copper pieces are cast, and its operations site just a few miles away at Latrobe Machining Company where they are processed. Visiting both sites allowed him to learn about all aspects of production so he could better analyze, communicate, and implement creative and cost-effective methods to solve industry problems.

“It was captivating to be able to watch the entire manufacturing process of a complex part, from its casting at the Foundry to its machining and plating check at LMC,” he said.

As he returns to complete his master’s degree, he is appreciative of the opportunity that broadened his technical knowledge, provided opportunities to effectively communicate high level concepts in an approachable manner, and to apply the knowledge he gained into practical solutions for future projects.